Whilst the announcement is welcomed, the PDA Ability Network want to see that this translates into real, tangible support for those who remain in or want to return to work. Therefore, the network calls on employers to meet their obligations under the Equality Act (2010) towards disabled employees or those with long-term health conditions, and to consider how they can make employment opportunities accessible for disabled pharmacists.
At a PDA Ability Network meeting that took place this week (18 March), members talked about the fear of declaring their disability and being ‘demonised’ by doing so. Members also expressed concerns about facing greater barriers to career progression by being honest about their condition.
The PDA Ability Network is concerned that recent rhetoric suggests that disabled people are not wanting to work. In the experience of the network, disabled members do want to work, are highly skilled and capable but face barriers in accessing work. These barriers include employers being unwilling to make reasonable adjustments (that they are legally required to provide) which are often simple and low-cost.
Employers may be unaware that government schemes such as Access to Work exist, and that these schemes may refund some (or all) of the costs of workplace adjustments. The PDA Ability Network advises that the first step towards accessing this funding is to have an open discussion between the employer and employee about which adjustments would help them.
The PDA Ability Network is also concerned about a recent GPhC figure that less than 1% of registered pharmacists are disabled, as the percentage of the general population with one or more disabilities is many times higher. This means either there is significant under-representation of people with disabilities within the profession, that there is under-declaration of their disabilities from registrants or that there is a combination of both factors.
The GPhC statistics show that whilst improvements are being made in support available to those with disabilities, there is still a long way to go to ensure that disabled people feel comfortable to declare their conditions, without fear of prejudice.
The latest PDA Ability Network survey results show that 59% of respondents had not declared their condition to the regulator. The survey also revealed that 40% of respondents felt that they had been excluded from the workforce, underemployed or unemployed due to their disability.
As called for in the PDA’s “Standing Up for Sitting Down’ campaign, there needs to be a compassionate culture of dignity in the workplace, with zero tolerance of discrimination.
Get involved
- Join the PDA Ability Network here.
- Follow the PDA Ability Network on social media using the hashtag #PDAability
Learn more
- PDA Ability Network releases initial findings from the disability discrimination survey
- Access to Work factsheet for employers
- Access to Work: get support if you have a disability or health condition: What Access to Work is
- Equality Act 2010: guidance
- Biggest shake up to welfare system in a generation to get Britain working
Not yet a PDA member?
If you have not yet joined the PDA, we encourage you to join today and ask your colleagues to do the same.
Membership is FREE to pharmacy students, trainee pharmacists, and for the first three months of being newly qualified.
Read about our key member benefits here.